Augie In Action! Augie In Action! - Ihrsa

| IHRSA Report | International
Joe Moore, l., of IHRSA,
Waldyr Soares,
of Fitness Brasil
In a market that’s shown considerable growth, it’s estimated
that there are now some 7.6 million health club members in
Latin America, with 3.6 million of them in Brazil alone. Brazil
now qualifies as one of the top 10 global markets for members.
Utilizing the theme “Preparation Brings Results,” the
conference featured several distinguished speakers, including:
Bernardinho, a Brazilian volleyball coach and Gold Medalist
at the 2006 Pan-American Games, who presented “Striving for
Excellence;” Gustavo Franco, the former president of Central
Bank Brazil, who addressed “Perspectives of Brazil;” Stephen
Tharrett, president of Club Industry Consulting and former
senior vice president of athletics, golf, and tennis at ClubCorp,
who discussed “Retention and Profitability” and “Marketing
and Branding;” and Gustavo Venturi, Ph.D., the director of
Criterium, coordinator of public opinion of Abramo, and
counsel for SBPM-Marketing Research Brazilian Society, who
took up the topic of “Best Age, Best Sale.”
Industry receives warm welcome in Malaysia
Her Honorable Minister Azalina Othman Said, the minister
of Malaysian Youth & Sports, delivered a keynote address to
the more than 200 people who attended the 6th Annual
Asia-Pacific Forum, which was held last November in Kuala
Lumpur, Malaysia. The minister, who’s working to encourage
more Malaysians to become physically active, welcomed
attendees to her country and the forum at a reception sponsored
174 Club Business International | MARCH 2008 | www.ihrsa.org
Michael Levy, center, of IHRSA, at ASIA Pacific event
by Technogym. The Malaysian Ministry of Youth & Sports
sponsored a festive closing reception and dinner.
In addition to the minister’s presentation, attendees heard
from an impressive array of industry experts and motivational
speakers, including: Nick Wreden, CEO, FusionBrand, who
presented “How to Save on Marketing, Reduce Churn, and
Increase Profitability;” Mike Chaet, Ph.D., president, CMS
International, Inc., who discussed the “Seven Laws of
Profitable Club Management;” Klaus Hilgers, president, Epoch
Consultants, who addressed “Winning Sales Strategies;” Tony
de Leede, managing director, Fitness First Australia, who
identified “The Three E’s of Health Club Success;” Phillip Mills,
founder, Les Mills International, Inc., who talked about
“Healthy People, Healthy Planet, Healthy Profits;” and Jan
Spattichia, chief executive, Energie Fitness Clubs Limited, who
presented “Lighting the Fire Within: Motivational Strategies
for Building a Strong Team.”
The event concluded with a behind-the-scenes tour of some
of Kuala Lumpur’s premier health clubs, sponsored by Universal
Fitness & Leisure. Other event sponsors included California
Fitness, Cybex, Deloitte, Fitness First, Les Mills International,
Life Fitness, Matrix, Precor, SportsArt Fitness, Star Trac,
Technogym, and TRUE Fitness. —|
.org
John Holsinger,
director, IHRSA Asia
Pacific, addresses
attendees at
Malaysian gathering
For a complete schedule of 2008 IHRSA meetings, turn to the “IHRSA Events
Calendar” on pg. 211, or log on to www.ihrsa.org/meetings.